The company that operated the ill-fated Yellow Duckmarine tours in Liverpool was placed into administration yesterday.

However, the owners of the business hope to restart tours as soon as accident investigators have completed their work.

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The decision follows last weekend’s incident in Liverpool’s Albert Dock when a shredded tyre was blamed for the amphibious vehicle sinking – forcing panicked passengers to scramble or swim to safety.

Liverpool-based Pearlwild, which owns the vehicle, has had to suspend tours while the Marine and Coastguard Agency investigates the incident. As the company has no other sources of income, the directors took the decision to put the company into administration.

Administrator Colin Burke said: “The events of last weekend are well documented and the Yellow Duckmarine company has had to cease operations while the directors, in conjunction with the appropriate authorities, investigate ways of making further safety adjustments to the vessels.

“This work will take some time and therefore, sadly, it has been necessary to make a number of redundancies, with a skeleton staff being retained to deal with a number of administrative matters.”

The administrators added that the company has retained advance payments and deposits in a designated account and therefore customers who have pre-booked will be offered the opportunity to reschedule their trips or to have their monies returned to them.

Mr Burke also said: “The directors remain hopeful that the business can be restarted as soon as they have completed their works.”

Thirty-three people, including two crew, were on board the amphibious Quacker 1 when it started sinking just before 4pm last Saturday.

Nearby barges sailed to help as passengers tried to swim back to shore, helping to narrowly avert a major disaster.

Eighteen people were taken to the Royal Liverpool Hospital for treatment, mostly for shock, but all were discharged later that evening.

The sinking was the second time one of the World War II vessels had sunk this year.

In March, the entire fleet was ordered out of the water after a bus, which was not carrying passengers, went under.